


Girlish Fun

by jacksparrow589



Series: Unfurling Possibilities [2]
Category: Anne with an E (TV)
Genre: Female Friendship, Gen, Girls discussing guys, mentions of Shirbert, oh hey there's some Jerry/Diana in there too
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-10
Updated: 2019-10-10
Packaged: 2020-11-28 18:36:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20971160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jacksparrow589/pseuds/jacksparrow589
Summary: After the events of "And All Around, the Snow Fell", Diana and Anne spend the day together. Anne tells her best friend all about the events of the previous afternoon.





	Girlish Fun

**Author's Note:**

> “And All Around, the Snow Fell” was supposed to be a oneshot, and then I suggested in a comment reply to arbylocks that I'd have to write about Anne telling Diana because she deserves to know, and then this happened. And it's not done after this!

Diana had invited Anne for a day of “girlish fun”—by which she'd meant ice skating—to make up for having left her the day prior. As the girls walked back to Green Gables for tea afterward, Diana apologized again. "I'm sorry for leaving you the other day, Anne. I hope the walk home was pleasant."

Anne had barely been paying attention, but she smiled at the memory. "Oh, it was," she said breezily.

Diana tried to decide how to broach the topic. "I saw Gilbert leaving at the same time as us... Did he walk with you?"

Rosy cheeks from skating and the temperature aside, Anne flushed to the roots of her hair. "Yes, we walked back together."

Diana grinned joyfully. "Anne Shirley Cuthbert, you are as red as holly berries!" She grabbed Anne's hands, stopping her from walking any further. "You must tell me what happened!"

Anne held back for a moment, but the news burst from her in an excited whisper. "We kissed!"

Diana let out an enthusiastic whoop before joining Anne in giddy laughter.

"Diana, it was positively magical! I haven't stopped smiling!" Anne let go of her friend's hands and spun tightly in place.

"Tell me everything!" demanded Diana as they continued walking. "What did he say? What did you say? Did he ask you first?!"

Anne took a deep breath. "He joined me on my walk, and I thanked him for standing up to Josie. He apologized for tugging my braid and said that Bash said he'd deserved it, and I asked why he'd been telling Bash about that. He said that he was telling Bash about Avonlea, and I said I was hardly the right person to use to explain."

Diana laughed, and Anne continued, "He said... that I was like a rose in a cornfield—" Diana sighed with a giggle, and Anne had to agree it sounded a bit less romantic the way she said it "—and he meant it, and I realized..." Anne stopped. "You remember when we went to Charlottetown to help Miss Stacy? I said Cole was being ridiculous at the train station. He told me that Gilbert had a crush on me. He thought it was obvious. It hadn't been to me... up until yesterday." She bit her lip. "I thought I'd ruined everything by not seeing it, but he was still looking at me the same way he always has, and I... I kissed him."

Diana's hands flew to her mouth. "Anne! Really?"

Anne nodded. "But then he kissed me back, and it seemed to go on forever..." She sighed. "The snow was falling around us... It was... breathtaking." Her smile grew broader, remembering that that had been Gilbert's descriptor, though she'd wholeheartedly agreed with it.

"Was that all? It wasn't—it's written all over your face!" Diana tugged on Anne's hand.

Anne tucked her hair behind her ears. "He told me he loves me."

Diana's mouth dropped open. She was so stunned she didn't even bring her hands up to cover it. "Oh, Anne..." she breathed. She couldn't say this was an outcome that she'd predicted, and while it was thrilling, given that Anne had only just realized her feelings, it seemed perhaps a bit much.

Then again, Anne's demeanor clearly indicated that her memories of yesterday were very fond, so it must have turned out well. "What did you say?"

"The truth," Anne answered shortly before expanding: "I'm only just starting to realize that love doesn't feel like what I thought it would, and while I know there's something there that I want to grow, it will take time." She smiled serenely. "Gilbert felt it was a satisfying enough declaration."

"He...?" Diana didn't complete the question, but Anne knew, and nodded with a wide grin.

"Again!"

"Oh my goodness!" Diana took Anne's hands again and they whirled around in the snow. When they finally collapsed in the snow (picking themselves back up as quickly as possible to keep their coats clean), Diana gasped, "That sounds like the most wonderful beginning to a courtship ever!"

"Courtship..." Anne hadn't contemplated the long-term implications of yesterday's events with quite that language.

“Are you... not courting?” Diana's eyes widened. “You didn't tell Marilla and Matthew!”

Anne shook her head. “It's all so new!” She sighed. “But he did seem quite sure... I don't think this is just a passing fancy, or an idle lustful desire...”

Diana squeezed Anne's arm. “Talk with him. Gilbert is nothing if not sensible. He must have not thought it the right time, but I'm sure it will turn out alright if you just say what's on your mind.”

“But what if he doesn't have the same expectations? What if this is all doomed to fail just as it begins?” Anne wailed.

Diana drew herself up to her full height and with all the ladylike authority she could muster, she said, “It's not. But if it is, Gilbert Blythe will rue the day he broke your heart, I promise you.”

Anne threw her arms around Diana. “You're such a good friend, Diana. I promise to do the same to anyone who crosses you.”

“I fear I might be the one doing the heartbreaking,” Diana murmured as they approached Green Gables.

“Diana!” Jerry bounded up to the girls. “_Bonjour, Madamoiselle Barry._”

“_Bonjour, Jerry_.” Diana flashed a shy but fond smile at the Cuthberts' farmhand.

Anne rolled her eyes as the two exchanged pleasantries she didn't entirely follow, but she took the time to notice instead. Jerry was very clearly smitten with Diana, who was very aware of the fact (not that Jerry was attempting to hide it) and seemed at least to not want to hurt Jerry's feelings. Diana was much more schooled at hiding her feelings, however, which made sense, given her parents' expectations of her.

Anne just hoped that Diana married a man who loved her for all that she was, and who Diana loved in return.

“Come on, Anne, I'm freezing!” Diana tugged Anne along to the house.

“So, has he proposed yet?” Anne teased.

Diana let out a shocked cry of false outrage, bent down, picked up a snowball, and pelted Anne with it. Anne laughed and returned fire before dashing up onto the porch, where Diana would not throw. The girls knocked the snow from their boots and unlaced them before heading inside to enjoy their tea. Anne would worry about courtship tomorrow. Today's precious adventures were far from over.

**Author's Note:**

> Is there a name for the Diana/Jerry ship? If not, can I propose Dairy? I know the letters aren't in the right order (Though I guess you could do Derry...), but it goes amusingly well with Shirbert. I'm not convinced there's as much there, but goshdarnit, they're both just so cute!
> 
> Anyway, I have only one more story planned for this series, but given the nature of it, it may well spawn more.


End file.
